The Source Book On Sikhism

Guru Nanak And The Hooded Cobra

It was a hot summer day. As usual, Nanak had gone out to the woods with the cattle. Leaving the cattle to graze there about, he retired to the cool, sheltering shade of a nearby tree and abandoned himself to the soft caresses of nature.

Soon, overtaken by languor, he fell into a nap. The sun slowly rose to the zenith and the shade of the tree retreated westwards, leaving the sleeping figure of Nanak exposed to the direct rays of the hot mid-day sun.

It so happened that a cobra came out of a hole nearby and spread its hood so as to cover Nanak’s face against the sun.

Precisely at this dramatic moment, Rai Bular happened to pass by. He saw the awesome cobra poised in a menacing posture near the sleeping Nanak. He was scared lest it should strike. So, cautiously he advanced his steps. But no sooner did the snake see him than it slunk away into the hole.

The incident confirmed Rai Bular's faith in the divine credentials of the boy Nanak and he told Mehta not to regard his son as an ordinary child.

Next to Nanaki, it was Rai Bular who was aware of the divine in Nanak and, whenever Mehta was unpleasantly involved with his son, Rai Bular invariably came to the latter’s rescue.